The Belfast fighter was put down twice in the opening round but battled back to win a unanimous decision by scores of 115-109, 116-108, 116-108.

Making his American debut and defending his belt for the second time, Frampton was sent to the canvas for the first time in his professional career after taking a left hook from his Mexican opponent. The second knockdown came when he was caught with a hard right at the end of the round.

But Frampton recovered well to put pressure on Gonzalez in the second, delivering some good combinations. The referee deducted a point from Gonzalez in the third for repeated low blows. As the fight progressed, Frampton began to dominate and was landing the more effective punches.

However, Gonzalez, the massive underdog, was providing a much sterner test than anticipated and never stopped trying to win.

After another low blow in the 11th, the challenger was deducted a second point but that did not matter because Gonzalez needed a knockout to win. Frampton landed more punches throughout and in the end won a comfortable points decision.

Frampton said: "I didn't feel great in the first round. I got up from two flash knockdowns, though, and recovered well. The kid could punch very well. I got up and showed courage. I came back and won most of the rounds and gave excitement."